Adopted By God

I had a great conversation with my dad recently. We had just had breakfast together, which is no small feat since we live about seven hours a part. Breakfast consisted of myself, Dad, Uncle Jerry, and two of dad's cousins who I know but haven't seen too much of during my life. In our phone conversation, Dad was telling me some of the LaMotte family history.

My dad's grandmother had her son (My dad's dad- and my grandfather) out of wedlock. To my understanding, no one is real sure of who my grandfather's biological father is other than a last name and a location. Eventually, Dad's grandmother married her husband (a LaMotte) and they began their life together. My grandfather (Dad's dad) began using the LaMotte name early on even though his biological father's last name was on his birth certificate. Granddad was in his late 20's/early 30's when he applied for disability for his failing eyesight and found out that legally he still had his biological father's last name even though he had been using the LaMotte last name for 30 years. So as a young adult, Granddad was adopted by my Great-Granddad LaMotte- making the name change official.  (My dad was already born and using the LaMotte name even though it wasn't "official")

This means that I have no real "LaMotte" genetics. Neither does my father, or my sister, or my two daughters. But because of the love of my great-grandfather for my great-grandmother- I have the last name of LaMotte- and no one can take that away from our family. (*Ironically, my great grandmother on my grandmother's side (Hovis') was also adopted, but she didn't find out until she was in her 80's!!!)

I am reminded of Romans 8:14-17 where we are reminded of our new identity through Jesus.

"For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God.  The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship.  And by him we cry, "Abba, Father." The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children.  Now if we are children, then we are heirs- heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory."

 When we receive the Spirit of God through through Jesus- we become adopted children of God. We are no longer slaves to sin. We are no longer unwanted.  We have gone from having no rights (slaves) to having the full rights and benefits of a child of God. Just as a biological child- we are heirs of God- brothers and sisters with Jesus to receive the fullness of God's love and blessings.

This is truly Good News! When we are adopted by God, one of God's children, our past is wiped clean.  We are given a new name. So that whenever we feel worthless or unloved- we know that we have serve a God who calls us His children. And we are given the right to call God our Abba, Father, and Daddy.
 

It's Potty Time!

For a month or 2 now, Abbie has been really interested in the potty. In fact, she loves sitting on the potty. So when she wants up on the potty, we let her get up there...hoping she'll go potty and we can have a potty party! As we look towards potty training when Andrea gets out of school in a week- we are encouraged by Abbie's interest in the potty. So, here are two snapshots of Abbie on the potty...and yes, we're saving them for her Senior Yearbook!

Abbie picked up the latest edition of Newsweek on her own while she was sitting on the potty. She is one well-informed youngster!

Unlike some babies, Abbie likes to read about current affairs and foreign politics (Iranian president on the cover). This is certainly better than reading US Weekly or some other celebrity rag about the latest Jon & Kate mess or the latest on Brittany Spears.

The Wal-Mart Blessing...

On Friday, I experienced a true blessing from Wal-Mart...I truly got more than I paid for. I was finishing painting our addition and I needed a couple more items to complete the project. I purchased some edging pads which come with two in each package. I was quite surprised when I got home and saw three edging pads in the package! Score!

Abbie's newest thing this weekend is telling us she needs to go potty and then walking to the bathroom! Andrea let her sit on the potty today to see if she would go. She didn't, but it's the first step in potty training! And she's initiating it!

Tonight, Andrea and I are heading to Outback for a date night. It's been a busy past three months. We figured out that today was my first Saturday at home with no meetings, school, praise team since the beginning of December. Far too long.

Below is a picture of Abbie from a recent Spaghetti night.

Vacation Recap

The LaMotte family just returned from our annual summer trip to Western Pennsylvania to visit the, uh, LaMotte Family. The summer/fall months are, in my opinion, the best time to visit Western Pennsylvania because the weather can be fantastic, which is was during our time out there. So here is the recap.





Travel: This is a long trip. Andrea and I have made it in around seven hours, only stopping once for gas and the bathroom. Our worst trip took over 12 hours, no thanks to Thanksgiving weekend traffic. Now, with a 13 month child, this trip is even longer. But it wasn't bad. We made the trip in around 9 hours or so. This included a one hour meal each way so Abbie could stretch her legs and play. Our travel was uneventful, although we endured a dreadful children's video called Wonder Pets. If you are a parent, or will be a parent, avoid Wonder Pets at all cost. Watching Barney would have been better than Wonder Pets.

If you are in for some dreadfulness, here is a You Tube clip of the Wonder Pets.

Friends: We always try to see several friends during our trips home. We met Jason, Ron and Joni at the world famous Quaker Steak and Lube on Sunday afternoon for wings. The Lube is well known for having some of the best wings in the country. We are always sure to stop there when we are home. On Sunday night, we visited with Jessica and her son Louden. He is full of energy and going to be a future farmer. Monday, Andrea went to Ohio to see her friend Wendy while I headed north to see Ashley and Dustin.



On an awkward note, the Great Sheakleyville Fair was going on, and we went in one evening to grab dinner. I saw a few people I graduated with that I have not seen or spoken to since graduating from high school 12 years ago. It's not that I don't like them, life has just taken us different places. It's somewhat strange talking to someone who you used to hang out with everyday when you haven't seen them in 12 years.



Family: This visit home is always about family. It was great to see my parents, sister, brother-in-law, and neice. This was one of the more relaxed family gatherings I can remember in a while. The highlight was going to Pymatuning State Park where we went swimming on a Western PA Beach (the lake). We went to Cherry Run Campmeeting on night to see some relatives on my mom's side of the family. We visited my grandparents on another day.



In all, this was a great trip home. While I wished it could have been longer, it was really nice to get home and be in our own house. Now, I just have to catch up on a week's worth of work!